Cerebral Palsy Diagnosing

Cerebral Palsy (CP), is the most common disability affecting function in children. It is described by a loss of control of coordination and muscle movements. Cerebral Palsy affects the child’s abilities such as learning, speaking, and become independent, so the effect can last through the child’s life-time. Trying to reduce the effects of Cerebral Palsy can improve the aspects of life for both the child and family. Cerebral Palsy is caused by a neurological condition ( problems in the brain and the nervous system). Specifically, it is caused by a problem in the part that is responsible for controlling muscles in the brain (1). Early age diagnosing for Cerebral Palsy is necessary, and it can take several steps: developmental monitoring, developmental screening, and developmental and medical evaluations (2).

The first step of diagnosing Cerebral Palsy is developmental monitoring ( surveillance) which means to track a child’s growth and development over time. The doctor monitors the child’s …show more content…
During developmental screening, a short test is given to see if the child has specific developmental delays. For example, motor delays or movement delays. Some developmental screening tests can be done by parents like interviews or questionnaires, others are tests given to the child (4). According to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), all children should be screened for developmental delays during regular well-child office visits at 9 months, 18 months, and 24 or 30 months. Many issues involving movement can be seen easily at 9 month of age, others such as mild movement might be easier to see when the child is 18 months. Most movement delays can be found by the time the child is 30 months of age. If the result of screening test increases the concern, the doctor will make referrals for developmental and medical evaluations